This is what I mean about dodging accountability. You don't "inherit" an economy. Have you ever looked at the economics before and after many presidents, and not just the current ones? It has always been in a gradual decline, its just hyper focus on the moment that takes it out of proportion. At the end of the day, it is just numbers too. Ofc the pandemic tanked the economy. WTF did you expect to happen when you close all the stores? It wasn't Trump's fault. What does the average American feel about the economy? The president can stop price gouging (because its illegal to begin with), which has been going on under the Biden administration unchecked and they did nothing to stop it.
Tariffs only are a tax to the foreign nations, not the American people. Trump made it obvious, that if you build a factory on USA soil, that you won't have tariffs. Its way easier to build a factory in USA, than to try to import. That is his aim, which doubles as bringing jobs to USA as much as it saves that foreign nation money on avoiding tariffs. Its a win win situation for USA, so why are you against it? Companies will be forced to adapt, so why bend to their will?
And no, countless judges chose not to look into the election, as it was controversial. Huge difference than there was no evidence of fraud. No one with any common sense didn't think there was fuckery in 2020. If you think it was negligible, you are ignorant about the technological backdoors, bribery, fraud and bad actors involved that have come out even after the election and admitted to their crimes. Mail in voting, needs to stop. Its been proven time and time again, that only the most corrupt dictators in the world employ them and it compromises voter integrity.
Voter suppression is a boogie man that needs to stop. Its "negligible" in all the ways you think fraud is. Voter ID needs to be implemented, so we can catch up to every other developed nation in the world. The only people against voter ID, have either been brainwashed or they want it to cheat. There is zero argument to be had here other than the racist assumption that black people can't get ID. Despite the fact they easily get ID to buy booze and drive a car.
As others have already pointed out, you do inherit an economy. It takes awhile - months, sometimes years - for economic policy changes to take effect, to be felt in the marketplace, and in the pockets of consumers. If tariffs are only a tax on foreign nations, who pays them? Where does the money come from? Jobs were lost to overseas entities during Trump's last term. Biden's infrastructure bill and chips act are two steps toward bringing more jobs home. This was the one good thing I had hoped might come out of the last Trump administration: bringing jobs back home, and encouraging more American young people to go into STEM fields through education incentives like scholarships/sponsorships. This is something I have tracked closely as I have always worked in an industry where employing non-citizens is difficult if not impossible. Nothing was done. So much for putting America first.
Identity politics have devolved into fascist rhetoric to the point that if you don't believe in it, you are evil, bigoted, racist, xenophobic and or transphobic. It leaves zero room for discussion. It has engulfed the Democratic party to the point you can't even have a discussion with these people anymore, without them saying they will commit suicide, or go insane. It is why so many people who are in the moderates, left center etc. went right wing. Because everything is right wing of identity politics. It's because of the hateful, witchhunt-esque and spiteful behavior on the Democratic party's side. People who don't ascribe to bullshit like CRT, gender theory, etc. are considered pariahs in the social sphere. Where is the mature conversation? Most people want to be left alone, and only care about their families and not fringe movements like LGBT who make up a small portion of the population. If you really want pure democracy, the majority wins. The majority isn't LGBT. It should be obvious, when some of the best modern Democrats in history, are abandoning the party in favor of Republicans. Democrats no longer represent the working class, or believe even in the constitution. They want to censor everyone and do away with freedom of speech, and damn and cancel everyone they disagree with. They are the party that wants to remove rights from everyone.
Both parties are being reinvented, and its high time the people who are done with this bullshit change sides and make a new name for themselves.
The only suicides are coming from people whose lives and well-being are directly compromised by MAGA (I can't even say Republican any longer) restrictions on personal choices that harm no one. The only belief here is whether all of us as human beings should have equal opportunity to participate in society, its benefits and responsibilities, or not. Academics can debate theory all they want. Most people just want to be left alone to live their lives. That's where the law, the government need to step in, to prevent interference at any level.
Part of the course of American, if not human, progress has been lifting identity-based restrictions, on blacks, on various immigrant groups ("no Irish need apply"), on women, on LGBT folks, etc. Drumming up fear toward this or that identifiable group has long been a key tool of tyrants, to divide the people they want to control. Jews were the main target group for Nazis. Throughout American history, it has often been the latest wave of immigrants, or blacks folks, the one immigrant group who came here largely against their own will.
As I mentioned before, the way to make "identity politics" go away entirely is to stop using this sort of demographic information about someone as a way to exclude, restrict, or persecute. But that would take away the tyrant's tool.
Is this going to be the equivalent of Loose Change where people keep derailing the conversation with this, and insist on debating something irrelevant? What people need to focus on is how to face what is coming, on how to prepare for that. This is a distraction that nobody would do anything about even if it were true.
Like, let's suppose this is true. Fine. What do we do? That's what we need to figure out here.
What are you referring to? Musk's interference via X/Twitter, or something else?
I'm pretty sure the election (votes and vote counting wise) was 100% legit. The US electoral system is quite secure and well verified. Despite much hearsay and conspiracy theories, investigation after investigation finds no evidence of fraud by either party. That's the wrong rabbit hole to go down.
I'm starting to think voter turnout is also a red herring. As California ramps up their pony express riders and slowly manage to get their results in, numbers seem to be approaching 2020 levels. I think Trump is right back in the vicinity he was in 2020 (Trump is up to 75 million as of now) and Harris is at 72 million with probably a few million more to come her way.
It could be Democratic voters did not turn out quite to the level of 2020, but it's hard to say. It could be turnout was down a little across the board and the reality is former Dem supporters flipped to Trump. Or maybe Dems supporters did get a bit complacent as despite coin toss poll results as pretty much every pundit and celebrity on the left seemed confident of a Harris win. The message that I constantly heard was that Harris team was running a perfect campaign and doing a wonderful job on everything including turning out the vote. I guess not so much.
The counting may have been sound, but as I mentioned before or elsewhere, voter suppression efforts have effectively disenfranchised thousands of voters in many states, mostly on the Democratic or progressive side. That is where the real cheating is happening - before any votes are even cast.
I dunno, man -- I really despise Hobby Lobby!
"AND THEN -- WE TAKE CHIK-FIL-A!"
There is always boycotting, but that presumes consumers can act with some collective discipline. It's not as if there are no alternatives to either.
